


Tea with a Goddess

by Burgie



Category: Star Stable
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-23
Updated: 2016-08-23
Packaged: 2018-08-10 13:44:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 837
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7847356
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Burgie/pseuds/Burgie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Aideen pays a visit to Fripp. Takes place before SSO.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Tea with a Goddess

The Secret Stone Circle was a place of great importance. It was also, coincidentally, the home of Fripp. Well, technically he lived in the space between dimensions in astral form, but the Stone Circle was his physical home.

Fripp’s blue ears twitched as he heard the distinct tones of a harp on the air. It could have been one of the druids, the harp was a popular instrument among the Keepers because of its status as a symbol of Aideen. But it wasn’t. Fripp could tell the difference between a harp and the harp.

“Hello, Aideen,” said Fripp, looking towards the distant cliff where a light had materialised. It coalesced into a form, the familiar one of a woman on horseback. The woman opened her eyes and smiled as the last notes of the song drifted from the harp.

“Hello, Fripp,” said Aideen. “It has been a long time.”

“Far too long,” said Fripp, scampering over to her. Aideen’s horse looked down at the blue squirrel and snorted a greeting at him.

“Well, one can hardly be blamed for going away after last time,” said Aideen. A small frown appeared between her brows, and she sighed. The sigh turned into a new wind that would bring a cold winter.

“We made mistakes, Aideen. Please, do not give up on centuries of tradition just because we did not know how to properly handle that situation,” said Fripp. He climbed up onto the horse’s head, which the horse allowed because at least he hadn’t just teleported there.

“Perhaps a mere mortal cannot possibly contain the powers of a goddess,” said Aideen. “I warded her body against damage, but her mind… I forgot about her mind.”

“We need you in this fight, Aideen,” said Fripp. “We cannot defeat this great evil without you.” He crept closer to the goddess and put a tiny paw on her hand.

“What do you suggest, then?” asked Aideen. Her long red hair blew in the invisible wind that followed her everywhere. “Perhaps I should wait until the vessel is an adult. The Soul Riders come into their powers young without any problems, but their magic is significantly less powerful than mine.”

“It is not your fault, Aideen,” said Fripp. “But yes, it would be a good idea to have your vessel this time be a little older. Elise was young when her powers manifested. That and her pre-existing mental state led to disaster.” Aideen looked out across the landscape, her eyes glimmering not with her natural power but with tears. Parts of Jorvik would never be the same, after the disaster that had occurred. And now the other side had an ace up their sleeve.

“Would there be a way to change the mental state?” asked Aideen. 

“Yes,” said Fripp. “Some conditions cannot be changed, but others can be prevented. What did you have in mind?”

“There is a girl who would make a good vessel,” said Aideen, closing her eyes and picturing the girl. “But events in her life have led her to live in fear. I cannot have her freeze up when it comes to fighting Garnok’s evil forces.”

“So what will you do?” asked Fripp. “Surely it is too late now, the Star has appeared and started this cycle.”

“I will change the future,” said Aideen. A bright light appeared around her as she opened her eyes, and a portal appeared off the edge of the cliff.

“Good luck, Aideen,” said Fripp. He hopped back down onto the ground, and Aideen smiled down at him.

“Thank you, Fripp,” said Aideen. She turned her horse, backed up, and then galloped to the edge of the cliff before jumping and disappearing in a flash of bright white light.

At various points throughout history, a bright flash heralded the arrival of a woman on horseback, both of them glowing with that same white light and accompanied by the sound of a harp. A girl was saved before the truck that had been about to hit her disintegrated in a burst of light. Aideen made sure that she was seen before she followed the twisting wrongness in time to another point, some twenty or so years later. A tiny alteration caused the man’s injuries to become fatal. He would never hurt anyone now.

And finally, standing at the edge of the road on that dark night, Aideen made one final journey. She stood at the side of the cot and used her magic to ward the young infant’s body and mind against magical damage. And then, she took her horse’s essence and disappeared into the girl, promising that she would not emerge until the girl got to Jorvik. She had made sure that she would get to Jorvik, too, having peeked into the future and seen the girl’s now-alive aunt becoming a member of the Keepers. Maybe this time, it would be the last time that she’d have to do this. This battle had to end soon. Everyone was getting tired after centuries of this.


End file.
